WELCOME TO POLITICO PRO’s Morning Health Care. This morning we’ve got new demonstrations of just how wide the European health agenda is becoming, and what it might mean for policy, plus our usual updates on drug pricing, medical treatments, and research findings. And your suggestions for summer stories are starting to come in — so not everyone is on the beach...! Thanks to sources, and watch out for our follow-up... And keep the suggestions coming in!

Many thanks to Elisabeth Weissbecker for invaluable help.

— WHAT’S HAPPENING

MAKING WAVES FOR MOTHERHOOD: A new lobby group is aiming to win a better deal for mothers everywhere in Europe. The Alliance for Maternal Health Equality is seeking equal access to high quality maternal health care for all women, regardless of nationality and background. It is championed by Bulgarian MEP Mariya Gabriel (herself recently a mother for the first time), who has distinguished herself in equality and gender issues since she was elected to the EP in 2009. It is also supported by the European Public Health Alliance, the European Women’s Lobby, and MSD for Mothers — and a website is promised within weeks.

A EUROPEAN PROBLEM TOO: The group points out that maternal mortality is a problem not just in the developing world but in Europe too, with some 1,900 deaths in pregnancy or childbirth in 2013. Migrant or minority mothers in particular face limited access to treatment, information and resources, says the Alliance. It is to seek a European Parliament resolution on maternal health equality in Europe, and will be highlighting the issue at an event on Safe Motherhood in Europe at the European Parliament on September 29.

HEALTH IS MUCH MORE THAN DRUGS: The maternal health campaign is just one more demonstration of the widening policy debate on health — which for many years was seen in Europe as very largely a debate about pharmaceuticals. The trend is visible in the growing acceptance of the links between social policy and health (as evidenced again just last month by the closer cooperation between the EU’s Social Protection Committee and the Working Party on Health at Senior Level, and commented on in last week’s Morning Health Care), or the greater priority given to the concept of health as a state of well-being rather than just the absence of illness (the focus of the Latvian presidency conference in June on “Investing in Health and Wellbeing for All”).

CONSEQUENCES FOR POLICY: One of the consequences is that health lobbies with a wider agenda — from controls on alcohol and tobacco to poverty relief, education and road safety — are gaining profile in Europe. And that could in turn could play to the advantage of Health Commissioner Vytenis Andriukaitis, who has, since he took office last year, argued for a broad approach to health policy, and a more generous interpretation of the limited EU treaty provisions on health. “I need to strive for health to be included in all policy areas,” he said last month, announcing his priorities for the next four years. He might like to enlist some support by reminding his colleague Jyrki Katainen, now the Commission vice-president responsible for jobs, growth, investment and competitiveness, of remarks he made in his previous role as prime minister of Finland: “My government has made an explicit commitment to promote well-being and health as well as to reduce inequality…” (in the foreword to http://bit.ly/1IAAYug)

PUSHING FOR WIDER HEALTH POLICY APPROACHES: The broader approach is scheduled to get early attention once everyone is back from their summer break. The annual conference of the European Public Health Alliance in Brussels on September 2-3 is boldly entitled “Towards a European Union for Health — From Health in All Policies to EU Governance for Health and Well-Being.” The focus will be on policy coherence at the EU level, and will have input from the ministers of health of three member states — Ireland, Poland and Greece. The agenda will explore how to generate the political will to act on public health evidence, how to find balance between economic policy and public health, and what will be the impact of increasing EU macroeconomic oversight of national health policies and programs. http://bit.ly/1IAAS5S

PRIVATE HEALTHCARE SOFTWARE VENTURE: A German joint venture in health insurance services has won approval from the European Commission. The German subsidiary of French insurance company AXA and CompuGroup Medical Mobile, one of the branches of the German software provider to international healthcare firms, are to work together in software development for private health insurance companies. The Commission decided that the merger would not raise competition concerns as the two companies have limited market shares in this field. http://bit.ly/1Ui2ftG

— IN THE NEWS

BUY ONE GET ONE FREE?: New cocktails of pricey cancer drugs will test the limits of premium pricing for life-saving medicines over coming years, and health care companies need to consider new strategies for expensive treatments. Governments and private insurers remain reluctant over funding, even for highly effective medicines, says Novartis pharma head David Epstein, recognizing that, “One drug plus one drug can’t equal the cost of two drugs.” A showdown is becoming likely as manufacturers mix and match therapies that harness the immune system to fight tumors. Reuters has more: http://reut.rs/1M09aVn

IT DOESN’T TAKE MAGIC TO TACKLE SCHIZOPHRENIA — OR SORT OF: A wizard-themed brain-training mobile game developed in the U.K. could be used to improve the memory of patients with schizophrenia, helping them in their daily lives at home and at work, researchers from the University of Cambridge said on Monday. Tests on a small number of patients who played the game over four weeks found they had improvements in memory and learning. The game, “Wizard,” is designed to help develop episodic memory — needed to remember where you left your keys several hours ago. BBC reports. http://bbc.in/1N3HJIU

— ACROSS THE CHANNEL

A DOCTOR TO GO: You might only be one swipe away from seeing a doctor. A Liverpool-based startup has created an app called “Dr Now,” joining two other tech firms providing video health consultations. As the NHS is overstretched, the app offers virtual appointments with doctors for £29. Or you might even consider taking up a monthly subscription for £4.99. For more, The Guardian: http://bit.ly/1MHjuTY

NHS CHIEF — THREE MORE YEARS: The U.K. Department of Health announces Professor Sir Malcolm Grant has been re-appointed to chair NHS England for another three years. http://bit.ly/1HkSzp2

WHY DOES IT ALWAYS RAIN ON ME: The U.K. government’s Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition says British people need to take supplements as part of their diet, as a dearth of sunlight could prevent Brits from “receiving healthy amounts of the essential vitamins.” A deficiency in vitamin D levels has been linked to a range of health problems, including musculoskeletal health, heart disease, type 1 diabetes, cancer and multiple sclerosis. The Guardian reports: http://bit.ly/1M0a4RT

— STUDY CORNER

BE OUR GUEST, BE OUR GUEST, PUT OUR SERVICE TO THE TEST: Disney’s Lumière isn’t the only Frenchman who knows how to be hospitable. French Minister of Foreign Affairs Laurent Fabius and Minister of Health Marisol Touraine have just announced measures to make French health and care facilities more attractive to foreigners. http://bit.ly/1Hast8c

EARLY DIAGNOSIS OF PANCREATIC CANCER, HERE’S THE CUP: The discovery of a biomarker of three specific proteins is good news for pancreatic cancer research. A study published Monday reveals that high levels of LYVE1, REG1A and TFF1 in urine may save lives through early intervention, by indicating early-stage pancreatic cancer long before it would appear using traditional methods. http://bit.ly/1IzXm6Z

CLOT-AWAY: Scientists from ITMO University have developed artificial blood vessels that are not susceptible to blood-clot formation. The implications are promising for cardiovascular surgery. The restoration of blood flow often requires the implantation of artificial blood vessels, which are susceptible to clot formation and can require lifelong intake of anticoagulants. Read the study here: http://bit.ly/1IAC6Oh

— AGENDA

Commission updates — The next two meetings of the Global Health Policy Forum will take place on October 22 and December 3, 2015 http://bit.ly/1IzxLer